The effect of music therapy on cognitive functions and adaptation Level in Alzheimer’s patients: a randomized controlled trial pilot study

This study aimed to examine the effects of music therapy on cognitive functions and adaptation levels in older adults residing in a nursing home. The research was designed as a randomized controlled pilot study with a parallel group, pretest-posttest design (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02432763). Conducted between October and November 2019 in a nursing home in Turkey, the study included 30 older adults (intervention = 15, control = 15). Data were collected using the Demographic Information Form, the Standardized Mini-Mental State Examination (SMMSE), and the Assessment Scale of Adaptation Difficulty for the Elderly (ASADE). The intervention group received music therapy twice a week for five weeks, while no intervention was applied to the control group. Data analysis involved independent and paired samples t-tests, Mann-Whitney U, Wilcoxon, chi-square, Fisher's exact test, and mixed ANOVA. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were 0.78 for the SMMSE and 0.81 for the ASADE. Results showed that music therapy led to a significant improvement in cognitive functions (p < 0.001; Cohen's d = 0.863, large effect) and a marked reduction in total adaptation difficulty scores (p < 0.001; Cohen's d = 0.778–0.845, large effect) in the intervention group. Significant improvements were also observed in ASADE subscales, including role and self-actualization (p < 0.001), mutual attachment (p < 0.01), self-perception (p < 0.01), and physiological condition (p < 0.05), whereas no significant changes were observed in the control group (p > 0.05). Between-group comparisons revealed significant post-intervention differences favoring the intervention group in both SMMSE and ASADE mean scores (p < 0.05). Mixed ANOVA analyses confirmed significant time-by-group interactions with large partial eta-squared values (≥0.14), highlighting the robustness of the intervention effects. Music therapy emerges as an effective non-pharmacological intervention for enhancing cognitive functions and adaptation levels in older adults residing in nursing homes. Given its ease of implementation and multifaceted benefits, the integration of music therapy into routine elder adults care is recommended.